Bottle holder and carrier



May1'9, 942. G. H. HUTAFF, JR v 2,233,555

BOTTLE nommn AND CARRIER Filed July. 1, 1941 2 Sheets-Shee t 1 Geo/e65 /z HQTAFfJk,

V Ma "19, 1942.

G. H. HUTAFF, JR

BOTTLE 'HOLDER AND CARRIER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I. I II v QEEHH Filed July 1, 1941 might be termed open position or to a of engagement with the bottle neck.

Patented May 19, 1942 2,283,555 no'r'rtn HOLDER. AND canning. George H. Hutaii', Jr., Wilmington, N. 2. Application July 1, .1941, Serial No. 400,614 2 Claims. (01. 294-87) My invention relates 'to new and useful improvements in bottle holders or carriers and has for its principal object the provision of a device of the character described which is adapted to hold a plurality of bottles so that they may be carried from place to place such as from the place of purchase to the ,home or to the place where the contents of the bottles are to beconto a store or other place of purchase where the bottles may be either redeemed or purchase made of another supply .of filled bottles.

Another object of the invention consists in the provision of a holder or carrier including what might be termed. a stationary member. and a movable member,-edges.of the members being formed with cut-outs or notches to receive the holder or sumed.- Likewise empty bottles may be carried necks of the bottles when the members are in normal positions so that a, plurality of bottles may be supported and carried from place to place, the bottles being removable from the holder or carrier when the movable member is swung to what A further object of the invention resides in the provision of .a bottle holder or carrier including a stationary member and a movable member adapted to be .engaged with the-neck or necks of a..b'ot tle or bottles for supporting the same to be carried from place to place, means being provlded for holding the movable member in bottleengaging position against accidental misplace: ment.

Still another object of the inventionresides in the provision of a carrier or support for a pluposition out line 99' of Fig.

. arrows. Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 8 showing a line. v

Fig. 2 is a top planof the holder or carrier shown in Fig. 1 with the movable member swung into open or bottle-receiving position.

Fig.8 is a transverse vertical section on the line ;3 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arro s.

4 is a transverse vertical sectionon the line 4-4 of Fig. l lookingin'the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 5 is a top plan of a modified form of my invention for holding-parallel rows of bottles.- three bottles being adapted to .be, supported in each row. o

Fig. 6 is a top plan of the form of the invention shown mile. 5 wlththe movable members swung into open or bottle-receiving position.

Fig.7isanendviwofFig.6.

Fig. 8 is atop p n of a support or. carrierfor a. plurality of indi ,idual bottle holders or carriers of the construction shown inFigs. 1 to 4 inclusive, one of the individual holders. or carriers being shown'in position.

Fig. 9 is ajtransverse vertical section on' the support or carrier for a"-plurality of individual rality of individual bottle holders or carriers, the

carrier or support for the individual holders or carriers being provided with means'for positioning the individual holders wonders and holding or locking 1 the same against accidental displacement.

With the above and other obi ects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, my in' vention consists in the novel details of construction, and arrangement of parts, described in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, andwhile I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of the invention, as they now appear tome, it will be understoodthat such changes may be made as'will fall within the, scope of the appended claims. In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a top plan of what might be termeda holder and carried from. place to place. The,

bottlesare properly spaced so that they do not 5 contact and it makes no ,difierence whether the bottle holders or carriers of the formation shown in Figs. 5 to 7 of the drawings, one of the inor carriers being shown in po--.-v

vdividual holders sition; and

Fig. 11 is a transverse vertical section on the line l'I.-|l of Fig. 10 looking in thedirection of the arrows.

'In the sale and purchased bottled beverages .it has been found desirable to provide a holder or carrier other than the ell-known form of paper bagwhich has, disadvantages so far as the holding and carrying of bottles is concemed, It is hard to stack the bottles in a paper bag in .proper form for carrying and the bottles will rattle causing undesirable noise. At the same time bottles containing the beverage are very often taken out of the ice box'or oil of the ice and there is moisture on the outside of the. bottles. If these wet bottles are placed in a paper bagthe bag becomes damp and can be easily torn thereby dropping 'the bottles and causing the same to break. In my improved forms of carrier the desirednumber of bottles may be placed inthe carrier" for supporting six bottles in.

8 looking in the direction of the y 'as shownmFig. 2.

' is provided on its normal -in Fig. 4, o! the drawings, I

The normal outer edge of the] strip or member lid bottlesare wet or not. Holders such as I have 4 disclosed are of further advantage in that they are convenient for returning empty bottles to the store or other place of purchase. It has become the custom for dealers to require" the customer to make a deposit on the bottles when purchasing. It is therefore to the advantage of the customer to return the empty bottles either to secure the refund of the deposit onto prevent the necessity of making a further deposit when a new purchase is being made. My improved forms of holders are of such a character that they may be retained by the purchaser or used over-and-over many times, thereby having advantage over holders or bottle carriers formed of destructible material such as pasteboard or the like.

In that form of holder or carrier such as is shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of the drawings six bottles are adapted to be supported in line, but I. wish it understood that I do not limit the device for use with any particular number of bottles and it will be appreciated that the holder might be made of a length to hold and carry a lesser number of bottles, than disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2, or a greater number as may be found desirable. The holder and carrier, shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, includes what might be termed a stationary member i, in the form of a strip, provided on its inner edge with a plurality of semi-circular notches or recesses 2 and on its outer edge having the curved portion 3 cooperating to provide a hand-engaging portion as will be laterappreciated. Secured to the under suniace of the strip l, by means of the screws I or other suitable fastenlngs, are the ioncleats or strips 6 which project edge of the strip I, as is quite gitudinally spaced beyond the inner clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings.

Hingedly connected at 6, to the ends of the outermost strips or cleats'i, is what might be termed the movable member of'the holder or carrier which is adapted when carrying bottles to be-positioned as shownin Fig. l or the drawings or when receiving the bottles to be positioned The position shown in Fig. 1 might be termed the normal position and the position shown in Fig. 2 the bottle-receiving position. This movable member is designated 1 and inner edge with a plurality of seml-circ adapted to cooperate with the notches or recesses 2 to provide circular. openings for the reception of the bottle necks, as shown more particularly the bottle neck being indicated at 9.

I is curved as shown at in, simor member I the button will -3 and 4 of the drawings.

or other suitable fastenings and the end of this strip is bent to term the angular portion l3.

When the members I and I are in the bottleshown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

carrying position, the strip II will extend over the upper surface of the strip or member I with the angular extension l3 extending parallel with the outer edge of the member or strip i and in frictional engagement therewith. For preventing accidental displacement orv swinging of the strip ormember 1 relative to the strip or member I I provide the rotatable button I secured to the strip or member i and adapted to be positioned, as shown more pa'rticularly in Fig. 1 of the drawings, with an endoverlapping the upper surface of the strip or member I. When-it is desired to swing the strip be turned into the position shown in Fig. 2 to extend longitudinally of the strip'or member I.

While I have only shown the movable strip or member I hingedly connected to the outer or end cleats or strips 5,'it can be apreciated thatii desired hinged connection might be made with all of the cleats or strips or only with the intermediate cleats or strips. 1' want to again emphasize the fact that these cleats or strips form not only means for hingedly connecting the'movable member to the stationary member, but act as a support for the movable member when it is in its bottle-carrying position shown in Figs. 1, When the movable strinor member is swung into shown in Fig.2, the necks of the bottles may be readily inserted between the strips or members and positioned in the notches or recesses 2 of the strip or member I. Then when the strip or member I is swung to overlie the cleats or strips 5 and to be supported thereby the recesses or notches'fl will cooperate with the recesses or notches carrier includes a stationary central member,

2 to provide circular openings through which the bottle necks are supported.

In Figs. 5, 6 and 7 of the allel rows of three bottles in each row. In this modified form of the invention the holder or shown at l5, and the movable members l6 and i1 notches or recesses 8 positioned on opposite sides oi! the central stationarymember asfshown. The central stationary member. 15 is formed on each longitudinal edge with the longitudinally spaced semicircular notches or recesses l8 and each of the ilarto the 'curved portion 3 or the strip I, and

when the strips or members are in their normal position, shown in Fig: 1 of the drawings, the ,said curved portions 1 and. I0 present a handgripping portion whereby the bottle holder may be carried tromplace to place. I wish tolay' that the cleats or.

movement of the movablemember relative to the stationary member, such as would'cause uneven grip around the bottle-necks. To prevent any lateral spread or separation of the members I and I a metal strip H is secured to the upper surface of the movable member I by screws I2 movable members l6 and I1 is-tormed in one longitudinal edge with the longitudinally spaced semi-circular recesses. or notches is adapted to cooperate with the notches l8 when the members It and l'l, are in bottle-carrying position to provide circular openings through which the necks or the bottles are received. The notches IQ, of the strips l6 and H, are formed in what with the edges of might be termed the normal inner edges of the membersor the edges which are in iuxta-position the central stationary member I! when in bottle-carrying. position.

Secured to the under surface of the central stationary member It, by the screws 20 or other suitable fastenings, are the transversely extending strips or cleats 2| which projectjbeyond the longitudinal edges of the member II, as is quite clearly shown more particularly in Figs. 6 and '7 of the drawings. As shown more particularly in Figs. 5 and-6 of thedrawings these cleats or strips 2| are longitudinally .spaced from one another and are positioned inwardly of the open position,-

drawings I have shown a slightly modified form of my holder or carrier the ends of the member l5.- llhe movable strips I3 I! are hingedly connected to opposite ends of the 1 cleats or strips 2|, as shown at 22, so that they may be readily swung to the desired positions. As in that form of the invention disclosed in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of the drawings the cleats or strips 2| form a support for the movable memasses andthey will. not overlie the individual holders or containers.

I The form of carrier or tray shown Figs. 19

" and ll of the drawings includes the bottom 33,

bars l6 and I1 when they are swung into the] secured to the central member I5, by means of the screws 25 orother suitable. fastenings. With the movable members positioned as Fig. 5 of. the drawings or what might be termed the closed bottle-carryingupstanding side flanges 34 and upstanding end flanges 35 having openings similar to the openings 29 to receive the fingers of the user for carrying the tray from place to place. The bottom 33 is formed with four. openings 36 arranged as shown and secured'to the upper surface of the bottom' 33 is the longitudinally extending strip 31 and transversely extending strim 39, these latter strips 38 being positioned between the stripv 31 and upstandingside flanges 34, .as is shown quite-clearly inFig. -10 of the drawings. The strips 31 and 38 divide the top into what-might betermed four compartments,

- in each of whichmay be positioned an individual shown in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings the necks of the bottles may be inserted between the central member I 5 and movablemembers I6 and I1 and positioned in the notches or recesses 3. When the movable members It and He are swung; into the closed or bottle-carrying positions shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings the notches or recesses l9 cooperate with the notches or recesses I8 to-provide circular openings receiving and engaging the necks of the bottles.

It-can be appreciated that at times it may be advantageous and desirable to support or carry a plurality of the individual bottle holders or carriers disclosed in Figs. 1 to 7 inclusivevof the drawings. For. this purpose I have provided the carrier shown inFigs. 8 and 9 in the form of a tray for'supporting four of the individual holders orcontainers, shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of'the drawings. In Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings I have illustrated a support or carrier in the form of a'tray to receive four-of the individual holders or carriers shown in Figs.

5 to 7' inclusive of the drawings.

In thatform of support or carrier shown in Figs. 8 and 9, a tray is provided including the bottom 26, longitudinally extendingiside flanges 21 and end flanges 28, the flanges 21 and 28-projecting upwardly from the bottom 26 and the end flanges having openings 29 to receive the'flngers of the user whereby the tray may be carried from place to place.- The bottom 26 is formed with thetransversely spaced longitudinally extending openings 39 through which the bottles carried by the" individual holders or carriers may extend, as shown more particularly in Fig.

holder or carrier which I. have designated at b and which are of the formation shown in Figs.

5 to 7 inclusive of the drawings. Pivotally connected to the upper surfaces of the upstanding side flanges 34 and the strip 31 are the buttons 39 which are adapted to overlie the upper surface of the individual holders or containers," and hold them in the tray against accidental displacement. When it is desired to remove the individual holders or containers the buttons may be rotated or swung so that they do not overlie the-individual holders or containers.

. In that form of the invention shown in Figs. 8 and 9 of the shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the buttons when overlying he upper surfaces of the individual holders or arriers prevent the trays from dropping away from the holders or carriers when thebottles are positioned to be supported by a, table or the like.

-. Having fully described my invention what I claimas new-and desire to secure by. Letters ,Patent is:

l A bottle holder and carrier including, a

stationary member, a movable member connected thereto, the movable member being adapted for movement into position to permit the reception of the neck of a bottle between the members and then positioned for cooperation with the stationary member to support the botvtle therefrom, and a member carried by the movable member and. 'engageable with the stationary member for preventing spreading of the 9 of the drawings. Secured to the upper sur-- f face of the bottom 26, and extending longitudinally thereof between adjacent openings 38, are

members from bottle-supporting position.

2. A bottle holder and carrier including a stationary member having longitudinally spaced recesses in one edge, cleats secured to the underside of the stationary member and having por tions projecting laterally from that longitudinal edge of the stationary. member having the re the strips 3|. Individual holders or carriers'may be positioned between the strips 3| and between the outermost strips and the side flanges 21, one of -such individual holders or carriersbeing in-'- dicated at a and, as has been previously stated, they are of the formation disclosed in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of thedrawings. Rotatably secured to the side flanges 21, as well as the longitudinally extending strips 3|, are the buttons 32 which when in the positions shown overlie the-upper surfaces of the individual holders or carriers. When it is desired to remove the indicesses therein, and a. movable member connected to the ends of the laterally extending portions of the cleats 'forswinging movement relative to the stationary member and into bottle re- 'ceiving or bottle supporting position, said movvidual holders vor carriers from the tray the buttons may be rotated toj.,bepositione d longitudinally or the side flanges 21 and stripsll. so that able member having longitudinally spaced recesses cooperating with the recesses in the stationary member to. provide circular openings :to receive the necks of the'bottles and the mov able member being supported on the, upper'su'r faces of the laterally extending portions of the cleats and on the same plane as the stationary member when in bottle supporting position.

drawings, as well as in that form 

